The present invention relates generally to exercise benches used for support when performing weightlifting or other resistance-type exercises, and is particularly concerned with a foldable exercise bench which can be folded up for storage.
Exercise equipment typically requires a large amount of floor space, regardless of whether it is in use or not. Thus, the advantages of a folding design for exercise benches and the like have been recognized for some time. Most prior art foldable exercise benches have disadvantages in that they require removal of lock pins before folding up for storage, and replacement of pins to lock the bench in the stored position. Such locking pins can fall out, be misplaced, or, if used improperly, may result in serious injury. One example of a foldable bench which must be locked in position via one or more locking pins is U.S. Pat. No. 5,882,283 of Stevens. In this case, a base member is pivotally connected to the frame and the two part bench is pivotally mounted on the base member. A stand is pivotally connected to the base member. A retractable device allows the bench and base member to be raised and lowered, and must be pinned in an extended position when the bench is moved into the raised, storage position.
Other folding benches are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,634,127 and 4,861,025 of Rockwell, 4,826,157 of Fitzpatrick, and 4,369,966 of Silberman. In each case, the bench is movable into a vertical storage position, but one or more locking pins or devices must be removed in order to allow the bench to be pivoted into the storage position, and the bench must be locked in the storage position.